Ramblings, Advice, Workouts & Food

Tag Archives: food groups

Cucumbers
Although cucumbers offer only modest nutritional benefits (a bit of vitamin C, A, and some fibre), this vegetable goes a long way in bulking up a salad, and it easily makes you feel full by ingesting little calories. Cucumbers are also great for if you have a craving for a crunchy snack. Just slice them up with the skin on instead of reaching for those chips!

Grapefruit
Grapefruit is a delicious and nutritious snack, breakfast side or salad topping. But researchers have also discovered that eating a grapefruit daily can help you lose weight.

Lentils
Lentils are packed with fibre, folate and magnesium AND they are fat free. They can be a great part to your healthy eating routine. You can prepare them many ways and feel satisfied minus all the calories and saturated fat that comes with eating meat.

Oats
Oats and oatmeal are high in fibre, which helps you feel full – and satisfied – longer. Plus consumption of whole grains has been shown to aid in weight loss. For the best benefits, fill up on oatmeal for breakfast – try steel-cut oats if you’ve got the time, or instant oatmeal if you prefer to eat at work (just try to pick the sugar-free kinds and add your own sweeteners).

Foods with shells
If you LOVE to snack on salty foods, foods with their natural shells on can help you slow down and savour what you’re eating while curbing the craving. For instance, unsalted pistachio nuts, walnuts in the shell, peanuts, and edamame in the pod can help you curb your cravings for saltier, unhealthier junk food. Plus, you’re not as likely to overeat if you have to work for your reward.

Apples
Apples can help you satisfy sugar cravings for less calories. Whether eaten fresh as a mid-afternoon snack in the office or baked for dessert, these nutritional powerhouses will help fill you up and keep you slim. Try slicing up your apple and sprinkling cinnamon on top – it’s delicious! Seriously, now I’m here at work craving it.

Eggs
What can I say about eggs? They are very nutritious and they only have – on average – 70ish calories, 6-7grams of protein and they contain almost every single essential vitamin you need in a day. They are affordable and part of a healthy weight loss plan. I recommend boiling up eggs so you have hard-boiled eggs ready to go for a snack or as post workout fuel.

Almonds
All nuts are healthy and loaded with good fats and other nutrients, but almonds are the one to go for when you’re trying to lose weight. They’re lower in calories and the protein and fat content will help keep cravings at ease.

Dark chocolate
Ok, hold on…. now when I see that chocolate is healthy for me I get excited. But, then I remember… DARK CHOCOLATE. LOL. Now, they are not low in calories OR low in fat.. however, dark chocolate still has to major things going for it. First, believe it or not – it’s very hard to eat large quantities of real, high-quality dark chocolate as compared to its milky sibling….mmmmmmm milk chocolate; and second, it’s very high in health-promoting antioxidants. It’s no diet food, but eating a few small squares to fight off a craving of a potentially much larger scarfing of, say, a piece of chocolate cake with icing, is well worth the modest calorie intake.

Vegetable soups
One of the biggest trends in weight loss research is the concept of calorie density – the idea is that your body pays more attention to the amount of space your food takes up in your stomach than it does to the amount of calories you’re consuming. So by eating lots of foods with a low calorie density, you’ll be satisfying your hunger for less. Vegetable soups (and we’re not talking cream of broccoli) are one great option – serve them as a starter or a light meal and just watch how quickly you feel full. However WATCH YOUR SODIUM INTAKE. If you’re going to eat soups – drink PLENTY of lemon water.. from REAL lemons.. not the concentrated lemon juice you find in the fancy lemon containers.

In this healthy oatmeal recipe, cook apples into your morning oatmeal and you’ll start the day right with whole grains and a serving of fruit.

Makes: 4 servings, about 1 1/4 cups each

Active Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 crisp apples, divided

1 cup steel-cut oats

4 cups water

3 tablespoons packed brown sugar, divided

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt

PREPARATION

Shred 2 apples using the large holes of a box grater, leaving the core behind.

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oats and cook, stirring, until lightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Add water and the shredded apples; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop the remaining 2 apples.

After the oats have cooked for 10 minutes, stir in the chopped apples, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, cinnamon and salt; continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender and the oatmeal is quite thick, 15 to 20 minutes more. Divide the oatmeal among 4 bowls. Top each portion with 2 tablespoons yogurt and 3/4 teaspoon brown sugar.

TIPS & NOTES

Shopping Tip: Choose unbruised, firm apples with smooth skin. Store for up to 4 months in the refrigerator.

However, what you put in and on top of your salad predicts the out come of if it’s healthy or not. This morning I read an article about the 7 worst salad offenders out there and thought you – my readers – would enjoy hearing about it. So I summed up the article for you!

Check out the worst 7 salad toppings out there:

1) Creamy Dressings These are probably the worst dressings you can choose. Take ranch dressing, for example, one serving of two tablespoons has 140 calories — and 130 of those calories are coming from FAT. Other dressings like blue cheese, Caesar, parmesan, or chipotle all fall under this category of dressings to avoid. Not only are they loaded with fat, but they also have high levels of sodium and very little nutritional value.

Healthy Alternative: Stick to vinaigrettes — however, you need to be careful because these can also be high in salt content too. I would recommend using a little olive oil with balsamic vinaigrette for your salads. Now, are you still wanting, needing, can’t stop thinking about the yummy salad dressing you’re used too? Have it – but not a lot. Put some on the side and dip the tip of your fork into the dressing before you put it in the salad.

2) Glazed NutsNuts are a great addition to your salads – they are a perfect source of healthy fats. But stay clear of nuts that have been kettle-cooked and glazed with sugar. So many companies sell glazed walnuts and pecans and so many of you think they’re still okay to eat. Stores and restaurants prepare salads to go and they include glazed walnuts and pecans sprinkled on top. that is, until they’re kettle-cooked and glazed with sugar.

Healthy Alternative: Stick to dry-roasted nuts to save on calories. I like to add sliced almonds to my salads, but chopped pistachios, pecans, and walnuts are a good addition too. Remember to not go overboard. An ounce will do.

3) Crunchy Tortilla Chips or Shells Wherever Mexican food is sold, people always order something like a “Southwestern Salad” thinking that they’re making the healthier choice by not ordering tacos or other Mexican dishes. They couldn’t be more wrong! These salads are loaded with cheese, creamy dressings, and high-calorie tortilla chips — or worse — served in a tortilla bowl!! So please, just stay far away from these kinds of salads, and especially tortilla chips or shells, from now on.

Healthy Alternative: You can still order a Mexican-inspired salad, just make some modifications. Request balsamic dressing on the side instead of ranch and hold the tortilla chips and cheese, but keep the rest of the healthy goodies like black beans, corn, and tomatoes.

4) Fried Chicken or Shrimp I always enjoy a serving of protein in my salads, and encourage you to do the same, but steer clear of anything fried. Adding anything fried to your salad just adds unnecessary calories and tons of sodium. It’s not just fried chicken I’m referring to here — this covers fried onions and fried seafood too… well really, anything fried!! Adding these will turn your salad into one salad that would have the same amount of calories that you should consume in a day – I’m serious. Wouldn’t you rather save your calories for say… dessert? Oh please don’t make me go into healthy desserts! Haha!

5) Cheese First let me clarify, cheese isn’t ALL bad. Daily servings of dairy products can boost your body’s fat-burning potential. Studies have shown that dairy-rich diets may help weight loss and the body’s ability to burn fat. Yet when some people add cheese to a salad, they really pile it on — and that’s why it’s on this list. But some cheeses are more nutritional than others, and there are HEALTHY ways to add them to your salad.

Healthy Alternative: Feta is a great choice for salads because it is lower in fat and calories than most cheeses. If you really need cheese on a salad, buy the “Laughing Cow” cheese triangles and have one. This helps with portion control. However, in my opinion, you just don’t need the cheese!!

6) “Craisins” Craisins, or dried cranberries, are a fruit, so that means they’re good for you, right? Well, not exactly. I know these are a popular item to add onto a salad, and many pre-prepared salads in stores like Walmart and Metro have these ingredients as a topping. But really, they have more sugar than you may realize. Craisins and raisins, are called “nature’s candy” for a reason! Though they are fat-free and relatively low calorie at 130 for a ¼ cup — they’re full of sugar — 29 grams to be exact.

Healthy Alternative: If you can’t give ’em up, I suggest counting them out and only adding 10 or so to your salad. Otherwise, why not add other seasonal fruits to sweeten up your salads? My favourite is adding a mix of diced apple with almonds!! It’s tasty – try it!

7) Croutons Croutons are an easy way to ruin your salad by adding refined carbohydrates. Croutons from a popular brand are about 30 calories for just six pieces. Do most people put only six croutons on their salad? Not likely. These toppings can also have high sodium levels depending on how they’re prepared.

Healthy Alternative: There is no alternative – you do not need bread put on a salad, simple as that.

Hope you benefited from reading this and I hope you are enjoying your long weekend!!